VESSEL REVIEW | Riviera Rose – Scylla's new river cruise ship to serve Portugal itineraries

Swiss travel company Scylla has taken delivery of a bespoke cruise ship built for operation in European rivers.

The Portuguese-flagged Riviera Rose will be operated by UK-based Riviera Travel on behalf of Scylla. The ship was designed specifically for operation on the Douro River, particularly the stretch of the river that winds through northern Portugal.

Riviera Rose has a length of 80 metres (260 feet), a beam of 11.45 metres (37.57 feet), a draught of only 2.1 metres (6.9 feet), a crew complement of 38, and 57 all-outside single staterooms and suites with individual climate control and that can house a total of 114 guests.

Well-appointed cabins and a broad range of amenities

Riviera Travel said the ship was designed to provide the same feel as that of a boutique hotel. The cabins are therefore finished to high standards with some featuring sofas and double wardrobes.

The amenities are distributed across four decks with the guest cabins – some of which have sliding glass doors and balconies – occupying three decks.

Other facilities include a sun deck with a lounge and a pool, a stern terrace, three restaurants with one offering both indoor and al fresco dining options, an atrium lounge/bar, a fitness centre, and a gift shop. The sun deck lounge can be lowered if needed to enable the ship to safely pass underneath bridges.

A lift provides access between the upper, middle and lower decks while access to and from the sun deck is only by stairway.

Work on the interiors was undertaken by Scheepstimmerbedrijf Da-Capo while Kampers Shipyard completed the wheelhouse and the sun deck lounge.

Klimaatservice Holland and Staal Gorkum were responsible for the HVAC systems, the toilets and other sanitary facilities, the firefighting sprinkler system, the cold storage facilities, and the sewage treatment plant.

Scheepvaartwinkel Marine supplied much of the onboard safety equipment including the lifejackets and the fire extinguishers and hose reels. Hempel paint was used on the exterior surfaces.

Sun Stainless Steel installed the ship’s gangways, windscreens, railings, awnings and deck furniture. Wehako Koudetechniek provided the galley and bar equipment.

Propulsion arrangement promising smoothing sailings while using less space

Riviera Rose is powered by two MAN D2862LE43 engines that each produce 550 kW (740 hp) and that are fitted with selective catalytic reduction technology. Robert Reitsma, Technical Director of Scylla, said MAN Engines were selected for the newbuild due to these being smaller than the powerplants used on the company’s earlier ships.

The propulsion package supplied by Veth includes two VZ-450 475kW azimuthing, contra-rotating propellers and a VT-180 200kW tunnel bow thruster.

Veth said the use of contra-rotating propellers for the main propulsion units ensures less resistance in the water and contributes to optimal performance.

The rest of the propulsion arrangement includes two main generator sets and an emergency generator set. The main generator sets each include one MAN D2676LE328 and a Stamford S5LM-D42 while the emergency generator set consists of a John Deere 6068AFM85 and a Stamford UCM274.

Retina, an affiliate company of Scylla, provided the ship’s manoeuvring aid, which uses multiple sensors including GPS to help maintain optimal sailing under a range of conditions. Should there be deviations from the planned route, the system will be able to intervene quickly and consistently to bring the ship back on course or to perform a full emergency stop if needed.

Riviera Rose was built jointly by Dutch shipyards Gebroeders De Jonge Shipbuilding Service and Initium, another Scylla affiliate. It is Scylla’s third new ship to be operated on the Douro River after the 2020-built Andorinha and the 2024-built Porto Mirante.

Among other improvements over Porto Mirante, Riviera Rose features a greater number of suites through the replacement of some of the single staterooms.